Public Health

Friends of Intelligent Democracy believes that public health is one of the most crucial policy areas.

Combating the Opioid Crisis

The opioid epidemic across the United States must be one of our top law enforcement priorities. Five people die from an overdose every hour, leaving children without parents, ravishing communities, and lining the pockets of drug dealers. Friends of Intelligent Democracy supports:

● Limiting opioid prescriptions to prevent unnecessary access to addictive painkillers. For example, in Alabama there were 1 million more opioid prescriptions than the total population of the state itself;

● Holding pharmaceutical companies responsible for their complacency and negligence in perpetuating the opioid crisis;

● Appropriating federal funds to local law enforcement agencies to train officers how to handle dangerous opioids and safely administer Narcan.

Reproductive Justice and Abortion Rights

People have an absolute right to make their own reproductive health decisions. Since the Roe v. Wade decision of 1973, women have had legal access to abortion services, but nonetheless, there have been persistent efforts on the state and federal level to make these services inaccessible. Monumental legislation like President Obama's Affordable Care Act has helped improve access to healthcare resources for women and expecting mothers, but there is more work to be done. Friends of Intelligent Democracy supports:

● Ensuring unrestricted access to contraception and abortion services for menstruators without interference from clergy, employers, sexual partners, family members or political protestors;

● Repealing the Hyde Amendment and the Helms Amendment to allow the federal government to fund abortion services and refer Title X center patients to abortion providers;

● Meeting all of Planned Parenthood’s federal funding needs and creating more federal grants for public health nonprofits. Planned Parenthood and other non-profits provide high quality and affordable medical care to patients who need care. Not only do they provide abortion services, but educate the public, provide birth control, and provide cancer screenings:

● Making it illegal to violate a patient’s privacy as outlined in Roe v. Wade by harassing any patient coming in or out of a Planned Parenthood, or any healthcare facility that provides abortion services;

● Upholding the Affordable Care Act statutes that subsidize birth control to anyone who needs it to prevent unwanted pregnancy.

Vaccines

Vaccinations are a cost-effective, essential component of disease prevention in the United States that has led to the eradication of various infectious epidemics, such as smallpox and tuberculosis, which cause high mortality and morbidity amongst affected populations. Pseudoscience, fake news, and misinformation campaigns cannot be allowed to obstruct public health efforts. Friends of Intelligent Democracy supports:

● Mandating vaccination for all children and adults except in the case of medical exemption;

● Awarding grants to community health centers to make sure every member of a community is vaccinated;

● Requiring that K-12 science curricula include education on vaccination, public health and preventable diseases to ensure that every American is educated on the importance of vaccines and community immunity;

● Requiring that all American travelers to foreign countries with higher risks of diseases not often found in the United States are vaccinated before being approved to travel.

Health Insurance

At Friends of Intelligent Democracy, we believe that there is a universal right to healthcare. While Obamacare was successful in providing millions with health insurance, there are still millions of Americans that cannot afford copays and deductibles. No one should have to decide between their health or their wallet. The Democratic Party is the party of choice, which should apply to an American’s choice between public and private insurance. Friends of Intelligent Democracy supports:

● Passing Medicare X, a buy-in to Medicare, and the market-driven transition to Medicare for All and universal healthcare;

● Adding sexual orientation and gender identity to Section 1557 of the ACA that protects against patient discrimination.

Menstrual Equality

Every menstruator has a right to access products that make them feel comfortable and clean during their period. Years of gender and sex-based discrimination has culminated in laws that unfairly discriminate against menstruating individuals by taxing menstrual hygiene products and perpetuating a culture of silence around menstruation. The menstrual stigma pervades society and has led to a lack of action against menstrual inequity that is represented by the tax known as the “tampon tax,” lack of access to menstrual products in public restrooms, and unequal treatment in schools and the workplace. While several states have effectively removed the tax on tampons, the majority still tax menstrual products as a result of their categorization as “luxury goods”. Friends of Intelligent Democracy supports:

● Ending the practice of the “pink tax” and the “Tampon tax” that unfairly drive up the costs of female hygiene products;

● Installing free tampon and pad dispensers in every public school and government facility restroom regardless of designated gender;

● Installing unisex restrooms in every public school and government facility restroom regardless of designated gender.

Veterans Affairs

After surviving on the battlefield, no veteran should have to worry about surviving at home. The Department of Veterans Affairs and its healthcare facilities should not be a place for privatization and profit. Friends of Intelligent Democracy supports:

● Preventing the privatization of veterans’ healthcare and guaranteeing full medical coverage for all veterans;

● Addressing veteran homelessness by making best efforts to locate a veteran’s family, place them in affordable housing, and create job assistance programs

● Guaranteeing access to mental health services for veterans suffering from PTSD and other mental illnesses.

Physician Assisted Death

For some patients, no amount of painkillers or therapy can help make an unbearable condition manageable. Any patient who is terminally ill or in constant, perpetual pain should be able to safely and comfortably end their lives. Every patient should be able to make decisions about their health and quality of life. Friends of Intelligent Democracy supports:

● Legalizing physician assisted death nationwide

● Allowing patients to make this decision with their doctor without any form of interference from family, clergy, etc.

Right to Try

Terminally ill patients should be given every chance to improve their lives and possibly cure their condition. Friends of Intelligent Democracy supports:

● Maintaining the rules and regulations set forth in the 2018 Right to Try Act.

● Allowing patients to make this decision with their doctor without any form of interference from family, clergy, etc.